Embodiments of the present invention relate in general to complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technology, and more specifically, inductors in CMOS devices.
CMOS technology is used to construct integrated circuits such as microprocessors, microcontrollers, static random access memory (RAM) and other digital logic circuits. A basic component of CMOS designs is metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs).
An inductor is a passive two-terminal electrical device that stores electrical energy in a magnetic field when electric current is flowing through it. An inductor can include an electric conductor, such as a wire, that is wound into a coil. When the current flowing through an inductor changes, the time-varying magnetic field induces a voltage in the electric conductor. The direction of induced electromotive force (e.m.f) opposes the change in current that created it, and, as a result, inductors oppose any changes in current through them. The inductance of an inductor device is the ratio of the voltage to the rate of change of current.
Along with capacitors and resistors, inductors are one of the three passive linear circuit elements that make up electronic circuits. Inductors are used in alternating current (AC) electronic equipment, such as in radio equipment. Generally, inductors are made during back-end-of-line (BEOL) processing.